Devil Ball Golf

Shotgun Start: Previewing the Transitions Championship

It's tournament time! We continue the season at Innisbrook Resort's Copperhead Course for the Transitions Championship. Here's a tournament primer to get you prepared for the week.

The course: At 7,340 yards, the Larry Packard designed Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort (par 71) has been one of the sternest tests on the PGA Tour in recent years. With the exception of 2011 (when Innisbrook came in at No. 27), the course has been ranked as one of the top 15 most difficult tracks on tour four out of the last five years. With tree-lined fairways and water coming into play on 8 of the 18 holes, the Copperhead Course certainly puts a premium on accuracy. Assuming you can hit the fairway with some regularity, the greens shouldn't pose much a problem.

The schedule: The tournament runs Thursday-Sunday. It'll be broadcast on the Golf Channel from 3 to 6 p.m. ET on Thursday and Friday, and 1:30 to 3 p.m. ET on Saturday and Sunday; and on NBC from 3 to 6 p.m. ET on Saturday and Sunday.

The field: The Transitions Championship tends to get overlooked by most fans (mostly because it's sandwiched between three prestigious events at PGA National, Doral and Bay Hill), but the players certainly give the third leg of the Florida Swing a lot of respect. The tournament currently has 6 of the top 15 players in the Official World Golf Ranking in the field (up from 3 last year) and 22 of the top 50 in the world (up from 18 in '11). Some of the marquee names include Luke Donald, Charl Schwartzel, Jason Day, Webb Simpson, Justin Rose, Ryo Ishikawa, Sergio Garcia, Nick Watney, Brandt Snedeker, Matt Kuchar and Gary Woodland (the defending champ).

The video: Check out some of the memorable moments from the Transitions Championship's history.